For those that didn’t read the article:
Dad, I don’t want to play anymore. Coach Mack hates me.”
“Maddy, he doesn’t hate you,” as you try to convince yourself as much as her. “Did you learn anything?
“Well, I learned what the high post is, and a back screen, cross screen, and down screen as well,” she says through the sobs that are diminishing into whimpers.
“Well that’s good. How does your skill level compare to the other girls on the team?”
I think I’m going to be a starter.
Imagine that your child has potential that you can see. Do you go with a nice friendly, easy going coach but hasn’t won a title in years? Or do you go with a coach that sees the potential that you do but knows only hard work will got get points on the board?
The article said it was u-10. That's way, way, WAY too young to be on a young player's case like described.
I coached u-10 girls soccer for two seasons. In our second year together, we went undefeated in our league, three of my players are going to play on the local varsity when they get to be sophomore age, and the parents of my young ladies bought me a monogrammed team shirt designed by the girls when the season was over.
That's because it was fun from start to finish. I even let them choose their team nickname because there were four teams from our town, and they even made up their own cheers. And let me tell you, these kids worked their tails off in practice and in games. I never said so much as a raised voice word to any of them all season except to yell across the field at how proud I was of them.
You can be good, you can have expectations, you can even make players work hard. But at that age, you can and must have fun. Making the game fun for the girls gave them the desire to improve.